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Outdoor Dining

About

Dining Out NYC is New York City's permanent outdoor dining program. The program is managed by the New York City Department of Transportation (NYC DOT).

Eligible food service establishments may apply for outdoor dining in the roadway, sidewalk, or both.

The requirements for how sidewalk and roadway cafes are designed, built, and operated are available on New York City's official rules website. To help food service establishments understand the requirements for outdoor dining, the City has created an interactive Setup Guide.

The Dining Out NYC Setup Menu offers design options for food service establishments to create compliant outdoor dining cafes. It offers options, such as barriers, flooring, overhead coverings, and more.

Key dates

  • March 5, 2024: Food service establishments may begin applying online to join the Dining Out NYC program!
  • August 3, 2024: Deadline for food service establishments with existing temporary outdoor dining setups to apply to continue operating until NYC DOT approves the application.
  • November 1, 2024: A temporary program outdoor dining setup that applied before August 3, 2024 must comply with the new Dining Out NYC design requirements by the earlier of: (i) 30 days after NYC DOT approves the Dining Out NYC application or (ii) November 1, 2024.
Visit the Dining Out NYC website

Temporary Open Restaurants Program

NYC DOT is no longer accepting new applications under the temporary program.